AAC
fund balance provides a cushion for unforeseen expenditures or revenue shortfalls and helps to ensure that adequate cash flow is available to meet the cost of operations. Combining a reasonable level of undesignated fund bal- ance with specific legally established reserve funds provides resources for both unanticipated events and other identified or planned needs. Two things I suspected were confirmed this year while
working with numerous counties during the pandemic-in- duced recession: (1) many counties are suffering from anemic revenue levels, which produce anemic budgets; and (2) many counties have very little or no reserve funds and no unappro- priated general or road fund balances. I suppose taxes are not popular, but they are necessary. I’m on the same page with Mark Cuban, the American entrepre- neur, investor and owner of the Dallas Mavericks. He says, “While some people might find it distasteful to pay taxes, I don’t. I find it patriotic.” Paying taxes in my home county of Randolph gives me a feeling of responsibility, of being a part of the fabric of my county and community, of contributing to the common good. It is time for the counties that have not done so to do it — maximize your general and road millages for the good of the
SEEMS TO ME ...
county or at least start on that forward path. Te property tax is a progressive tax, not a regressive tax. Many of your constituents would be affected very little. Here’s why. With- out going into great detail, Arkansas taxpayers are eligible for an annual tax credit up to $375 against the property tax on a homestead. Many people own a home where the tax on the homestead is not even $375 or only slightly over. Te county gets the value of the credit from the State Property Tax Relief Fund. Tere are other provisions of Amendment 79 that help keep property taxes from jumping immensely at one time such as limiting the annual increase of assessed value after a reappraisal and freezing the assessed value of the homestead of a disabled person or a person 65 years of age or older. Te property tax is the available tax base that offers the
greatest promise for effective local fiscal decision making. Take the bull by the horns and do what is necessary to properly diversify your revenue sources so that you are not so reliant on volatile sources of revenue and at the same time start building needed reserve funds. In sum, the property tax is a stable, adequate, and reliable source of county revenue. Maximize the county millages, and it keeps you from putting all your eggs in one basket. Don’t fiddle around like Nero did. Remember what happened to Rome?
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